Everyone Has an 'Avatar'

U.S. director James Cameron has offered the planet another blockbuster after 1997 disaster movie Titanic and has been awarded two Golden Globes in the process. The alien world he creates in the science-fiction movie Avatar has become a fantasy dreamland for people around the world.

In a 3D, 2D and Image Maximum (IMAX) joint release, the story of aliens on a foreign planet fending off U.S. colonizers has earned more than $100 million in its first three weeks in China, becoming the country's biggest box office hit to date.

But it is poised for greater success than box office performance. Criticism of its simple and familiar story hasn't stopped people worldwide from walking into theaters and enjoying the visually spectacular landscapes of this alien world. They find almost everything they hope for from a movie: innocent love, the triumph of justice, environmental themes and, in particular, awe-inspiring and revolutionary special effects.

While Chinese audiences are joining the global mania for the visual spectacle, from tips on avoiding an "Avatar 3D headache," to experiencing the depression called "Avatar blues," cinema managers are inking contracts for 3D or IMAX screens, preparing for the post-Avatar era. In the new era of filmmaking, industry observers say, 3D movies will distinguish themselves from 2D versions, as color prevailed over black-and-white and sound over silence.

A box-office miracle

Avatar will scale even greater box office heights in China, even though on 2D screens it has been replaced by the biopic of Confucius, starring Chow Yun-Fat, since January 23.

The movie Avatar is scheduled to run until February 28, China's Lantern Festival. During China's Spring Festival holiday, the release of more than 10 domestic movies with festive themes will divert a number of audiences away from Avatar.

Still, as in other overseas markets, more expensive tickets for 3D versions lifted its awesome box office performance in China. While a 2D ticket costs about 30 to 40 yuan ($4.4 to $6), a 3D ticket 60 to 100 yuan ($9 to $14.6) an IMAX ticket sets the theater-goer back 130 to 150 yuan ($19 to $22).

In addition to about 800 3D screens, the country has only 11 IMAX screens nationwide.

Moviegoers in China have queued up in front of cinemas with 3D or IMAX screens for a ticket because they have been told "if you haven't seen it in 3D—particularly IMAX 3D—you haven't seen it at all."
Shanghai-based Peace Cinema, for example, which has the city's only IMAX screen, sold out almost all tickets for Avatar for the remaining 20 days of January on the 10th, and the sellout was realized one day after the cinema manager decided to sell tickets around the clock.

For an IMAX ticket, moviegoers queued up several streets away.

The 3D and 3D IMAX versions accounted for approximately 70 percent of Avatar's box office in the first two weeks in China.

My Avatar

Viewers may have different perceptions of what Cameron wants to say through Avatar, but many of them could not resist a longing to live like a Navi in Pandora, from being disappointed with the real but imperfect world.

Environmentalists see nature worship and the bloody pillaging of natural resources; inhabitants of former colonies think of their history of being colonized; and many Chinese have interpreted the movie as a fable of land-grapping by property developers, since the movie deals with natives being forced out of their territory.

"I'm afraid they walk into cinema just for a dream, not any of these key words, because as long as this three-hour dream lasts, they have a break from boring daily routines and put aside temporary mundane worries about housing and work, " wrote Yan Feng for Shanghai-based Xinmin Weekly.

Indeed, Cameron iterated that many scenes of Avatar were from or inspired by his dreams since his school years. That may explain why Jack, the hero in the movie, can observe an alien world with innocent eyes of a child.

In addition to the dazzling 3D effects, the design effect of crippled Jake's walking, observing and feeling through remotely controlling a Navi body helps audiences totally immerse themselves in the story and the alien scenery.

"It set my soul free in the theater [while watching Avatar]. Sober-minded though, I felt it was like living in a dream too beautiful to be reality, " said rock and roll singer Zheng Jun in his blog at Sina.com, one of China's biggest Internet portals.

An online computer program captures this mindset and helps fans obsessed with the planet to "avatarize" their images. After uploading a portrait, they can see a Navi version of themselves, blue skinned, with yellow eyes and a pair of cat-like ears.

Some people may wonder why the movie should elaborate on an anti-technology sentiment and the worship of primitive lifestyles using computer graphics technologies. But Yan does not think this is a problem. "Avatar is de-humancentric," Yan wrote. "Human sin is obvious when compared with the Navis—the greedy nature of humans instead of the doom of the Earth is the biggest tragedy in this movie."

The movie has stunned movie professionals in China, too. Director Ning Hao who achieved rapid fame with his small-budget movies said he and other directors and movie producers were "speechless and depressed" after they watched Avatar. "The atmosphere was weird in an embarrassing silence. Stunned by the spectacular Pandora from Cameron, none of us felt like talking about the movie," Ning said.

Hong Kong director Peter Chan said it's a movie for fans of certain types of movies. "One life ends, another begins." Avatar fans began to wonder what will happen in Jake's new life, and whether and when Cameron will offer them Avatar II and Avatar III, like Star Wars by George Lucas.

One thing for sure is that given the movie's box office performance in China, Cameron will embody more Chinese images in Avatar II if there is one, as he said during a promotional tour for this movie in China around Christmas.

Many Chinese may find the floating Hallelujah Mountain of Pandora very familiar, and Cameron admitted that Huangshan Mountain in east China's Anhui Province was an inspiration for this creation. But according to a recent Reuters report, the "Southern Pillar" in Zhangjiajie in south China's Hunan Province provides prototypes for various elements in the movie including the Hallelujah Mountains.

"Avatar is not an example of innovation, but is a perfect example of Hollywood creation—they learn fast and are capable of incorporating in their movies all kinds of technologies and achievements of different cultures, and then sell it back to you at much higher prices," Yan said.

Post-Avatar era

Avatar, an old-fashioned adventure story in new visual effects clothing, is being hailed as a milestone in motion picture production because it pushes the technologies of computer visualization to a new height.

Many agree the fact that Avatar drags people accustomed to watching movies in front of a computer into cinemas for much better visual and audio effects is its biggest contribution.

Observers are debating if Avatar would usher in a new era of film-making, when the movie is still wooing audiences worldwide with stunning alien landscapes and dazzling battle scenes created by marvelous 3D and computer generated imagery technologies.

Wen Li, spokesman for the China Film Group Corporation, Avatar's Chinese distributor, said producers and distributors of Avatar are free of worries of pirate versions because it's almost meaningless to sit at home and watch a 2D pirate version.

Seemingly an effective solution in fighting copyright infringement, 3D technology has created a win-win situation for Avatar as well as 3D and IMAX screen producers.

China is the second largest market for IMAX screens. Cinemas here have begun to update their screens, including three additional IMAX screens in Kunming in south China's Yunnan Province, Tianjin and Wuxi in east China's Jiangsu Province. The number of 3D screens has increased from more than 600 at the end of November 2009 to currently nearly 800.

Before the release of Avatar, IMAX screens had served many public institutions such as museums and exhibition centers to show education documentaries on nature and sciences, because of high costs.

It's estimated that China will screen around 10 IMAX movies this year. To embrace audiences' interest in 3D movies, some 2D movies such as Titanic and some of this year's movies for the Spring Festival season will be launched in 3D versions soon.